


Dream Team V(oltron)

by Kisekei_rin



Category: Voltron: Legendary Defender
Genre: Actually a high school club, F/M, Female Pronouns for Pidge | Katie Holt, Female Pronouns for Reader, High School AU, Lance will be friends w Keith eventually, Reader is named but no appearance given, SLIGHT TW FOR PTSD sorta it's not the focus but it's there, Slow Burn, allura is a goddess, basically anime and video game jokes, everyone has been aged up to around the same ages (Minus Coran lmao), lance is a lanky boy, sleepovers galore, summer club
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2017-08-30
Updated: 2017-10-29
Packaged: 2018-12-21 21:47:46
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 4
Words: 14,202
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/11953296
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Kisekei_rin/pseuds/Kisekei_rin
Summary: "SPACE LIONS!" Lance yelled, fist pumping the air to get our attention.".... Lance, no." Pidge replied flatly."Ahem, Lance yes!" He corrected."Well, what do you think?" Shiro asked me. I popped my head up from under the desk, holding a new whiteboard marker in my hand. Lance spun on his heels towards me, looking at me with hopeful eyes. I couldn't help but chuckle at his excitement."Lance, yes."AKAA new start for a bundle of 'half empty' teens given by an uncle who just wants them to see how beautiful the sun can be.Things go a bit haywire when they realise sunshine isn't so pretty when it starts to burn.





	1. Dream, meet the Team

**Author's Note:**

> This is my first fanfic on here and my first kinda voltron fanfic. It's meme-filled because I can't be too serious
> 
> IMPORTANT NOTE LIKE REALLY IMPORTANT:  
> The reader has a name already which will be revealed across the fic. Reader is female just for the sake of this story because it's a longer one and Pidge is using female pronouns here. 
> 
> Thank you and please enjoy d(^^ )

"This'll be great." Pidge whispered, nudging my arm gently. I smiled.

"I'm sure we'll have the time of our lives." I replied, trying to sound as enthusiastic as possible. She grinned at me, focusing her attention at the front where Mr. Coran stood. He had just begun fiddling with the powerpoint presentation that displayed the words EXTRA COOL SUMMER SCIENCE CLUB in comic sans, the EXTRA COOL being highlighted in pink.

Pidge, being the one friend I had in our year, dragged me into signing up. At first, I was adamant with keeping out of it, until she reminded me of how we were now starting our third year of high school and I had yet to make any new friends except for Shiro.

'--And he doesn't count, because he was one of my brother's friends.' Finishing her rant, she crossed her arms and looked at me expectantly. Rubbing my arm awkwardly, I replied.

'... I mean it's not like I can argue against that. I'll go with you.'

'Yes! Thank you!' Pidge fist pumped with a huge smile on her face. 'If you really hate it, you can quit, but come on, you won't because I'm there and I'm your best friend.' She joked, causing me to giggle. 'Well, it's not just me, Matt and Shiro will be doing it too.' She added before shutting her locker door and starting on the path to the workshop. I followed behind her. 'It's actually this whole school event and I'm kinda itching to do this after hearing about it last year.'

'I don't know what help I'll be, but I'll try and do my part.' I shrugged. 'After all, I didn't take higher science or engineering.'

'It's fine! I asked Mr. Coran already and he thought it would be helpful having someone to do the more mundane tasks.' Pidge reassured me. 'We need a more logical minded brain on the team, and you're one of the most organised people I know.'

'I wouldn't call myself logical but whatever.'

Our conversation had ended there as we arrived at Mr Coran's workshop, sitting down at the worktop closest to a window. I was left to think about how on Earth I would fit in with this project realistically.

It was true that I was somewhat organised, especially when it came to tests. Having such a quiet personality lead to me being relatively out of the way of school drama, so I had quite a lot of free time to study. So it wasn't that I had great organisation, I just didn't have a life.

Pidge had been my first friend growing up, she and her brother Matt used to live next door so I would usually be with them while I waited for my parents to come home. We bonded over our shared anime obsession and love for video games.

A sombre smile spread across my face as I remembered the time we had together before entering high school, missing the innocence we shared with each other. Pidge had saved my life, if she hadn't been awake to notice--

I stopped my train of thought there, feeling the far too real panic rising within me. The incident was still a recent one, it wasn't sensible to try and relive it in my mind. Glancing to my side, I watched as Pidge hung on Mr. Coran's every word, the excitement brimming in her eyes. In my darkest moments, her and her family were a shining light for me.

The Holts had done more for me than anyone. Colleen decided that it would be best that I lived with them while my parents worked away to make sure I was safe at all times. Also so that I wouldn't have to move away and attend a different high school. I had to sleep on the couch, but it was only temporary.

While living with the Holts, I was able to meet Shiro, one of Matt's friends. Shiro became a strong brother figure for me as he had for Pidge. He and Holts made sure to look after me and support me, stepping in as a second family. I owed them a lot. Especially to Shiro and Matt who would always be there to check on me in the library during school lunch. Pidge would join me every now and again, but her time was usually spent with Hunk in Mr. Coran's workshop.

Speaking of Mr. Coran, he was now gesturing wildly at his whiteboard which displayed the deadline for the project.

"You kids need to get creative! Think of the wildest idea possible and work back from it!" He enthused. "Do you think we invented the wheel by chance?! Of course not! Those cavemen fellows must have--" He rambled on, he seemed to be just as bad as Pidge. Glancing back over to her again, I could almost see her mind brewing up ideas. Her excitement when it came to anything science related really was adorable. Seeing her enthusiasm lifted a smile onto my lips too.

Sitting up in my chair and trying to return my focus to Mr. Coran (and failing), I caught the gaze of another guy in the class. He sat next to Hunk and had his head rested in his hand, his elbows on the worktop in front of him. I couldn't exactly tell if he was staring at me or not, he had a generally bored expression on his face and looked as if he was just tuning out. Judging by the complete boredom in his eyes, he was in a similar situation to me.

His eyes.

I found myself staring at them intently to check and recheck if what I was seeing was real. It was as if someone had copy pasted one of those heavily edited stock photos onto his face, and it was hard for me to look away from them once I noticed. Deep blue irises with long, dark eyelashes, like those false ones you could always see Nyma wearing.

Not realising I was now just fully staring at him, he shifted his gaze to meet mine, a knowing glint in his eye. Before I could look away or make it look casual, he smirked and shot me a wink, making my eyes widen and cheeks flush. Snapping my head back to the front, I hid my face with my hand.

From across the workshop I could hear a faint chuckle and felt myself die a bit inside. We hadn't even been sorted into teams for this project and already I had embarrassed myself. Mr Coran had finished his speech about creativity and checked the time, promptly telling us to hurry to our groups and begin making plans. I hoped to dear god that we weren't with that guy for the project.

As everyone began milling out of the workshop, he caught my eye again and flashed me a cheesy smile. I averted my eyes quickly and pretended as if I saw nothing, although the tint on my cheeks suggested otherwise. He snickered and walked out.

"I see you've taken a liking to Lance." Pidge commented, leaning in. I jumped away from her, seeing her smug face. "I leave you for one minute while I focus on Coran and you're already making friends."

"Making myself look like an idiot in front of them, you mean." I grumbled.

"We'll work on it. Now, to the group!" Pidge leapt from her seat excitedly, grabbing my hand and hauling me up with her. "Although, the surprise is more for you than me since I organised these groups, and boy, you're in for a treat!"

"Please tell me that Lance isn't with us." I prayed, stopping us in our tracks and holding her hand with both of mine. "That would be the absolute worst news you could give me."

"I'll say one thing: it's good you've got his name memorised." Pidge replied, flashing me that signature half-grin before continuing to lead me to the meeting room. "Also that's not the worst news. The worst news is that he's a huge flirt and you showing interest in him has just upped his ego." I groaned, knowing I was going to completely explode with embarrassment if he even mentioned what happened.

Opening the door, Pidge ushered me in. The room consisted of a huge desk in the centre with a whiteboard on wheels tucked away neatly in the corner. Some desks with computers had been set up as well as a supply closet.

I visibly shuddered.

Bad, bad, memories came from the supply closet.

"Hey d'you remember when you were locked in a closet with--" Pidge began, before I shot her a deathly glare.

"Pigeon, we do not speak their name, got it?" I cut her off sternly. With her hand on her hip, she raised her eyebrow, opening her mouth to speak.

"Woah! Yes ma'am!" A voice that was definitely not Pidge's responded. Looking up, I saw Lance leaning against the door frame, saluting at me. Next to him was Shiro and Hunk, the latter smiling apologetically. A girl with strikingly white hair poked her head up between the two. My throat went dry.

"Guys! Come in." Pidge ran to hold the door, chatting happily with them as they came in. I spotted some chairs out of the corner of my eye and busied myself with pulling a few out for the group, stopping only when Shiro approached me.

"Decided to give it a shot, I see." He smiled warmly. I shrugged slightly.

"You know how she is." I said, gesturing to Pidge who, at the time, was talking excitedly with the other girl.

"Ah, as persistant as always." He chuckled, nodding knowingly. Shiro looked around at the room, crossing his arms. "It looks like we have a good team."

"Obviously we do, I'm here." Lance added as he walked past with the whiteboard, positioning it on top of a platform in front of the chairs

"I'm pretty sure that I'll be the one carrying you once we actually start." Pidge retorted as she sat on the edge seat.

"Oh yeah?" He raised his eyebrows at the brunette. "So, remind me, who was it that got an A on their science project last year--" His eyes flickered over to me. "--Pigeon?" He finished crossing his arms sassily. The reference to her very recent 'failure' caused her face to burn red, the addition of her most hated nickname being the icing on the salt cake.

"I had it rough, Lance, she hated me!" Pidge flung a defeated arm in the air. By she, she referred to her freshman Biology teacher who tended to favour anyone who flattered her, hating anyone smarter than her. "We all know she was biased, and don't call me Pigeon, Lank."

"Hey man, if we're gonna be working in this group for a few months, I think it's fair we don't have boundaries. Call me whatever you want, even Lank, I don't care." He started. "And if you're friend's gonna use it, I will too." He sassed. "Speaking of your friend--" Lance then turned to me, giving me a flirtatious smirk. "I don't even know what to call you, sweetheart. How does Mrs McClain sound?" Startled, my cheeks flushed and I fumbled over my words for an answer, darting my eyes around the room.

"Well, seeing as she was staring at you earlier, I'm sure she's fine with it." Pidge commented, snickering at my embarrassment. My head snapped in her direction as I glared at her; she shot me a triumphant look.

"You can stare at me anytime, babe." Lance shot me a finger gun. Any other time I would've laughed, but I was too flustered to even open my mouth.

"Gross, man. Anyway, we need to introduce you to everyone!" Pidge hopped off of her seat, pulling up on to the platform with the whiteboard which stood in the centre of the chairs. She clapped her hands above her head to get the group's attention. Shiro turned first and spotted me up at the front, awkwardly hugging myself, and shot me a reassuring smile. The rest followed suit until all focus was on us.

A loud knock rung on the door, quickly gaining our attention. Flinging the door open, Mr. Coran stood proudly next to a dark haired male who looked like he wanted to be anywhere but here.

"Students!" Mr Coran began, shutting the door behind him and striding up to the front with me and Pidge. He surveyed our setup offering a noise approval. "I see that we're just beginning to introduce ourselves. Let me start you off with your newest recruit and my very own nephew, Keith!" Mr. Coran dragged over and clapped a harsh hand on the aforementioned Keith's shoulder. Keith gave his uncle a look that would've killed anyone else. Begrudgingly, he turned to the rest of us and offered the smallest possible wave.

"Hey." He huffed, shoving his hands in his pockets. Mr. Coran beamed from ear to ear.

"That's the spirit! Now everyone, listen carefully." Mr. Coran took a whiteboard pen from the desk and stood facing us all. "Your group was handpicked from the best of the best in our school by myself and Miss Gunderson. This may only be a fun project to everyone else, but I want this to be something deadly serious for you."

He turned to the board and began writing the words 'DREAM TEAM' at the top. "If we are to start this project off strong, we need to understand each other's best assets, which is a marvellous link back to your introductions!" He spun on his heel and grabbed Keith, pulling him up in front of everyone again.

"He may not look it, but young Keith here is a wonderful pilot and good at working in teams! I'm assigning him as your supporting leader." Keith awkwardly rubbed the back of his neck as he kept his gaze away from everyone. As soon as Mr. Coran had finished he walked off to the back of the room to keep out of the way.

"You're a pilot?!" Lance repeated, half in disbelief and half in awe. Keith shot him a glare.

"Yeah, I am." He replied defensively. Before anything more could be said, Mr. Coran continued on.

"Your main leader will be Takashi, who has shown to me on numerous occasions that he has just the right skills to lead anyone. His communication skills will be most helpful." He wrote down 'leader' and 'support leader' on the board and added their names next to it.

"Shiro is fine." Shiro addressed the group, offering a humble smile. Mr. Coran dropped the pen and strode over to the others in the group. He took the girl Pidge was talking to earlier by the shoulders.

"Here we have Allura! She has most definitely inherited her father's public speaking skills and is also a wonderful source of information." He grinned proudly.

"It'll be a pleasure to work with you all." She nodded, her white hair bouncing as she smiled at us politely. Mr. Coran continued down the line.

"This big fellow is Hunk, a budding engineer and fantastic cook! He's certainly a hard worker, so we must use him to our advantage." Mr. Coran slapped him hard on the back, making Hunk stumble slightly.

"Ah--uhm-- Hi, I guess." He waved awkwardly. Next to Hunk was Lance who had already begun posing for his introduction. He caught my gaze, wagging an eyebrow suggestively. Laughing slightly, I covered my mouth to hide my smile.

"This young chap is Lance. He'll seem like a complete whirlwind of energy at first, but deep down he's got a lot of drive. Not to mention, he's a fast learner!" He tugged Lance's cheek affectionately, much to his dismay, and moved on to Pidge.

"Now as most of you know, Miss Gunderson here is our most promising scientist yet! She's an absolute whizz with computers, her process and utilise data rivals that of professionals! Undeniably our strongest brain on the team." Mr. Coran gushed, placing his hands on his hips.

"I mean you all know me here minus Emo Extremo at the back but why not, I guess." Pidge shrugged. Upon hearing the insult, Keith furrowed his brows. Pidge caught onto his confusion, raising hers. "What? Don't tell me you're "grunge" or something, we all know that's just--"

"Grunge isn't emo." He replied flatly. Pidge stared at him, mouth agape. I could tell that this new kid would be her new torment in the coming weeks. The poor guy was already revealing his weakness.

"I, too, am confused by my nephew's ever changing fashion. But not to worry! He's always fit when there's a funeral about!" Mr. Coran chuckled, elbowing Lance in the side a bit too harshly.

"Haha! You hear that emo? That's one point to Pidge." She said, pointing at herself triumphantly.

"It's Keith--"

"Anyway! Onto our last member." Mr. Coran had finally made it round to me. I was honestly nervous to hear what Mr. Coran would describe me as, knowing full well that he wouldn't sugar coat anything.

During my inner conflict, I seemed to attract the attention of Lance for the third time that day; this time he had a more concerned look on his face. Realising that I had been fidgeting nervously, I put my arms firmly at my sides and did my best to smile at him.

"And finally." Mr. Coran began, placing a warm hand on my shoulder. I brought my attention back to the front where the rest of the group were focusing on me. It was daunting. All of the negatives about myself flashed through my mind before Mr. Coran spoke aloud. "We have our trump card." He lowered his voice dramatically, giving jazz hands around my face.

My head flew round towards him, staring him up and down to check for any signs of this being a joke. Mr. Coran just winked at me before straightening up and continuing. "A prodigy who is equal in potential to Miss Gunderson herself. Her discipline, organisation and well rounded academic abilities will put us leagues in front of the competition! This is our glue, and she will keep this group working in harmony." Mr. Coran finished, grinning widely. My eyes widened, flickering between Mr. Coran and the rest of the group who were staring at me with impressed faces.

"May I ask your name?" Allura spoke up from the back, arm raised to get my attention. Snapping out of my trance, I nodded hastily.

"Y-Yes yes of course!" I cleared my throat to slow myself down. "Call me V." I replied, holding my arms across my torso. Allura smiled warmly in response.

"And there we have it!" Mr. Coran gestured back towards the whiteboard. "Our 'Dream Team'!  
I look forward to working with you all in the weeks to come." He held his hands behind his back and nodded, before striding over to the door and seeing himself out.

"Left as quick as he came." Pidge commented.

"That's what she sa--"

"Lance." Shiro cut him off, glaring in his direction. He just sniggered in response.

"Goddamnit Lance, that is so wrong." Pidge grimaced, physically shuddering. "Jesus Christ-- anyway," she waved off the disgusting thought, grabbing the whiteboard pen, "get seated, I'm about to start brainstorming."


	2. What on Earth is a Citpeldak?

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Lance doesn't get his space lions, Pidge is just as bad as Grundy, and Keith still doesn't have a mullet. When will Hunk return from the war?

"Robot space lions!" Lance called, raising his hand. It'd been a day since our initial meeting as a group, and we hadn't really gotten past the brainstorming part of things. With a stupidly early start to the day, Pidge and I had gotten to Lien Academy at around 7am, finding Lance to be in the workshop already.

"No, Lance, Jesus-- we need to think of something helpful to the science community." Pidge pinched the bridge of her nose, crossing her arms. The uncapped pen had been resting in her hand for a while, but had yet to even touch the board. "At this rate we might as well ask Coran for some pointers."

"What if it's space lions that join to make one huge robot?" Lance tried again, looking at her hopefully.

"Like power rangers?" I asked without thinking. Pidge shot me a deathly glare.

"Yeah! Like, they can do their own thing, or all join and do things together." He replied, nodding. 

"But with lions?" I continued, resting my head on my hands. 

"Why aren't the others here yet?" Pidge sighed to herself, turning away from us both. 

"And why can't you be fun like this mama over here, Pidge?" Lance gestured to me, earning himself Pidge's second glare of the day. A slight blush rose on my cheeks as I laughed nervously. "Look, Hunk's ill, Shiro lives miles away, and it's like 8am. Chances are people won't be here until much later. Which means: it's my suggestions or nothing." He finished smugly. Pidge looked like she was going to explode.

"Building robot lions won't win us the competition!" She flung a defeated arm in the air, shaking her head. "I'm at a point in my life where I'm praying that even Keith comes in to save me from you."

"What about me?" Keith asked, just sticking his head through the open door of the workshop. 

"Oh thank God!" She clasped her hands together and looked to the ceiling, praying. Keith looked from her to us suspiciously, before shaking his head and walking in. Pidge plopped down off of the platform. "Did Mr. Coran come in with you?"

"Yeah, he's just making the rounds on the groups, should be here soon." Keith crossed his arms, spotting the completely blank whiteboard. '... Still... no ideas?"

"Robot space lions, although Miss Gundy here doesn't approve." Lance responded, jumping up and stretching. "Well, that's my mental capacity spent, I've done my bit." He saluted, before dropping onto the only bean bag in the room.

"Is your brain the size of a pea?" Keith raised a brow. Lance gasped, sitting up straight.

"Uh, excuse me Mr. Mullet, I'd like to see you come up with something better!" Crossing his arms, he gave Keith a sassy look. 

"It's not a Mullet--"

"Ladies, please, no more fighting, you're both idiots." Pidge said, placing her hands in-between them to mediate. "Well, probably idiots." She glanced over to Keith. They both looked Pidge up and down, mildly offended expressions passing across their faces. I couldn't help but laugh.

"It's nice to see us all getting along." Shiro remarked from the doorway, holding it open for Allura.

"Morning everyone!" She chirped, waving as she entered. "I've got a few materials I want you to look at, something that I see beneficial for our project." At that statement, the four of us perked up and gathered around the desk as Allura rummaged through her things. Pulling out a vial containing a bright substance and some paperwork. 

"Woah, why's it glowing?" Lance ducked down to it's height to get a better look at it.

"I have no idea personally-- the documents aren't in Arusian, and I don't speak any other languages to tell you what it's in." She pushed the documents further into the centre of the desk for us all to see. Hastily, Pidge picked them up and scanned them, promptly thrusting them into my arms.

"They're in Galran, and we luckily have our very own translator." She explained as I almost dropped the papers. Looking up at the group, I saw Allura staring at me, shocked. Lance's mouth was wide open.

"You're Galran?!"

"O-only a little! My grandfather was, I spoke it with him growing up." I quickly clarified, waving off their suspicion.

"Thank god, that would've broken my heart." He sighed dramatically, making me chuckle slightly. 

Turning my attention back to the documents, I began translating them in my head.

"I found it in my father's laboratory and he seemed a bit reluctant to hand it over to me at first. He too didn't have any idea what it truly was." Allura informed us further. "The investigation for this material was dropped over two years ago."

"W-Well, it says here that the chemical's name is labelled on the actual vial." I placed down the papers. Just as I was about to reach for the said vial, Keith interrupted.

"Citpeldak." His eyes widened as he realised that he'd spoken aloud. "I-It's translation into the Arusian alphabet is Quintessence, if I'm remembering my Galran correctly." He looked to me for confirmation, a slight nervous expression on his face. Taking a quick glance at the label, I confirmed it.

"Yes, you're completely right." I replied, nodding, still a bit stunned at his outburst. Clearing my throat slightly, I began to read the document to the group. "It says that the properties of Quintessence are completely unique to itself. It has the ability to unlock and enhance abilities within people that are exposed to it. It is also able to fuse two individual's life forces, giving them a-- am I reading this right?" I quickly handed it over to Keith and pointed at the line I was reading from.

"Giving them a psychic connection if their bond is strong enough." He finished. The whole group exchanged glances, silence filling the room. 

"This... this is exactly what we're looking for!" Pidge broke out into a mad grin, excitement brimming in her eyes. "What else do the documents say?"

"There's no more information on its properties here, just how it behaves." Keith explained, setting down the papers. 

"Great!-- I mean, not great, but great because now we get to discover this whole new material!" She snatched up the vial from Lance's hands and made a beeline for the huge machine mounted in the corner of the room. "And I have been dying to just get my hands on this thing! Like, who on Earth has a computer this big?" 

We followed behind her as she ran some tests. The results came up quicker than expected, since there was barely any information. Pidge frowned, picking up the vial again and rolling it around in her hand. 

"V, go get those documents again and read them to me in full." She ordered, squinting down at the material. Quickly retrieving the papers, I swallowed and repeated the information. After I finished, she studied the substance with a hard expression on her face. Pausing a moment, she spoke.

"Hold this thing with me." She came up to me and placed herself between my arms, her back on my chest.

"Pidge what the--"

"It's changing!" She exclaimed excitedly. Just as she had said, the colour of the quintessence faded from white into a light green; its glow increasing. "See if it changes anymore if you hold me." 

Doing as she had asked, I hugged her and watched as the colour shifted to almost completely white and then back to green. Continually swapping between the two colours, it settled with a bright green colour.

"Just as I had suspected." Pidge mumbled, pushing herself off of me. 

"And what did you expect?" Shiro asked, eyes following Pidge as she made her way back to the monitor.

"It was connecting to our life forces together." I explained. "The colours represented that, I think."

"And it worked with us because of our strong bond, or so I've hypothesised." She tapped away at the results table on the screen.

"Are you two psychically connected now?" Allura asked excitedly. Looking to Pidge, I tried to feel any sort of attachment to her.

"Not on my end we're not." Pidge replied, head trained on the screen as she waved the question off. "I'm pretty sure that in order to get a psychic bond, we either need to get closer, or we need some sort of... other connection." She slammed the enter button, turning to us all again. "Meaning lots and lots of tests!" She enthused.

"Well, while Pidge is conducting her experiments, I think those available should see if there's any information online for this." Shiro suggested.

"I'll go get us a laptop." I offered, raising my hand. 

"Would you care to be supervised, m'lady?" Lance joked, tipping an invisible fedora. 

"That would be sensible, the laptop racks are in the school building itself and we don't want you getting ambushed." Allura reminded jokingly.

"I-I guess that's a yes, then?" I agreed uncertainly, cheeks slightly flushing.

"Great! Try taking the vial and reporting any changes to me when you get back." Pidge dropped the vial into Lance's hands and spun back around to the keyboard. 

"We'll set up a few chairs for the research. Come back soon." Shiro smiled warmly to Lance and I before he and Allura dispersed from the group. Just as we were about to leave as well, I spotted Keith trying to follow Allura and Shiro. That was, until, Pidge grabbed him by the jacket and pulled him next to her.

"Not you, emo, I need your smart mind for translation." She said absentmindedly. Keith's brows furrowed as he looked at her. 

"... Thanks..?" He crossed his arms, looking down at the shorter girl. "Should I take it as a compliment..?"

"Huh?" Pidge broke her focus to stare up at him. "What did I say?" She asked.

"You said I was smart." Keith repeated. Pidge's face dropped, her cheeks slightly heating up.

"O-Oh." She nodded. "Well, you might as well take it as a compliment." She shrugged, trying to brush off the embarrassment I could almost feel her experiencing. "I mean, I can't speak Galran so it is pretty cool to have someone who does--" she began rambling to save herself.

Just to make sure I was seeing things correctly, I glanced at Lance to my side. Sure enough, he was watching the current development with as much intent as I was. Eyes flickering to meet mine, he leant towards my ear.

"Am I seeing this right?" He  whispered, gesturing to the complete mess Pidge was slowly crumbling into. 

"I-I'm shocked." I stated, staring at the scene before us.

"Do you need something?" Allura asked us, indirectly notifying Pidge that we had seen the whole thing. Her cheeks bloomed with colour.

"Nah we're fine. We were just, you know, discussing how strange it was to see a Pigeon act like a lovebird." He acted innocent, discreetly shuffling towards the door and tugging my shirt for me to go along with him. Allura's eyes glinted knowingly, shifting towards Pidge as she waited for her reaction. Pidge stared at us for a moment with a confused expression, until the realisation crossed across her face and Lance made a bolt for the door; he took my wrist to drag me along the way. 

"Lance!" Was the only reply from her. 

"Took you a bit to get that, huh?" Came Keith's voice with a slight touch of amusement. Pidge's groan of annoyance followed.

"You sH--" 

"Man, I do love stirring the pot sometimes." Lance sighed, shoving his hands in his pockets.

"She's going to kill me for this later, you know." I stated, smiling up at him as I begun our walk across the courtyard to Lien Academy's main building.

"Not if I'm there she won't!" He said proudly, pointing to himself. I chuckled, crossing my arms.

"My hero." 

"Just doing my best to impress the ladies." He brushed it off smoothly, shooting me a finger gun which I couldn't help but snort at. "What, my lines not cool enough for you?"

"I'm sure you'll find luck elsewhere with your 'ladies'." I air quoted. He stepped out in front of me, dropping on one knee dramatically. I tripped on my feet slightly at the abrupt stop.

"If it's for you, babe, I'd ditch my playboy ways." He said, taking my hand between his two and smiling flirtatiously up at me. Staring at him blankly for a few moments, I felt my cheeks flush, followed by me bursting into laughter. Lance's façade dropped quickly too as he bit back on his lip to refrain from laughing (and failing). Holding out my hand, I helped him back to his feet after I'd stopped giggling.

"I knew you'd come around." He teased, crossing his arms. I smiled, rolling my eyes before dropping his hand immediately and continuing on to the side entrance of the main school building. Lance used his superior height to overtake and grab the door, holding it open while tipping his invisible fedora again. "M'lady." He bowed.

"... Is that why Pidge calls you Lank?" I laughed as I walked through. Lance extended his leg.

"The lankiest boy around." He joked, moving away from the entrance to grab another door which lead to the technician's office. As it opened, Mr. Coran popped his head up.

"Students! Miss Duninng and Mr McClain no less. What can I do for you?" He rose from his chair and guided us in.

"Just some laptops please, sir." I asked politely.

"Of course! I can give you three per group, it'll just take me a tick." Mr. Coran informed us, going into a supply closet near the back of the room. "May I ask what you've got so far for your project?" He called, a loud thud following. Lance and I visibly winced. "Ignore that! I'm fine!"

"... If you say so sir." Lance replied, leaning slightly to see the situation in the cupboard.

"We've just come across a new material we're thinking of working with, but we haven't got a full plan yet." I answered his question. Mr. Coran poked his head around the doorframe with a smile on his face.

"What is it?!" He asked excitedly.

"Uhm... C-Citpeldak..? The Arusian name is Quintessence, I don't know it's Altean name." I replied, rubbing my arm awkwardly. His face lit up even more.

"Incredible!" He gushed. "That material is only new by about 7 years or so. If you're able to make something with it-- well, let's just say, we won't be stopping at the science convention with this revelation!" He chuckled, handing the laptops to Lance and I. "I'll give you a little pointer: Quintessence is found in five varieties. It's born from the many emotions that man feel, but what it can be used for is still unknown."

"What colour is it usually?" I asked out of curiosity. He cocked an eyebrow at me.

"From what I saw of it when it was harvested, it was mostly white." He replied. Lance and I glanced at each other, before he took the Quintessence out from his pocket and observed the now blue light within. Mr. Coran's eyes widened.

"My word! I've never ever seen it like this, and I was one of the original scientists on the mission." He remarked, taking the material into his own hands. "I do think I'll be paying your group a visit to see just what on Earth is going on." He raised his eyes to meet ours, excitement brimming. "May we go now?" 

"I mean, sure?" Lance responded.

 

\--

 

"Marvellous, marvellous I tell you! For your group to have such an affinity to this material-- well, it's something not even us professionals could get to happen!" Mr. Coran looked as if he was going to explode at any minute.

"Sir, from the tests it looks as if V is the one factor that causes it to change. It's like it's white for all of us until we come into contact with her." Pidge explained, giving a visual demonstration by pushing me and Shiro together, the quintessence in his hand. Surely enough, the colour went a deep grey, but lightened as soon as I stepped away. A smile grew on Mr. Coran's face as he observed the spectacle.

"I am astounded. This is so, so incredible!" He repeated, snatching up the vial in his hands and rushing towards Pidge's monitor with the results table. 

"I had Keith translate everything from Galran into Arusian for us to understand and highlighted that in purple. The rest is what I discovered today." Pidge pointed to the points on the screen. He nodded, scanning the data over. 

"I see... a different colour for everybody and a different vibrancy..." He pondered for a moment, before spinning on his heel and posing dramatically. "I sentence you to summer homework!" 

"... Isn't a summer club enough?" Keith asked quietly, earning a cheeky grin from his uncle.

"Ah! But my dear boy, you must bond with each other!" He enthused, taking him by the shoulders and shaking him slightly. Keith had a slightly terrified look on his face. "If our Miss Dunning here is really as tuned in with the quintessence as here shown, then we must strengthen that connection between her and the material by strengthening the bonds between all of you!"

A few looks of skepticism were passed, silence filling the room.

"Well, I think it's a splendid idea." Allura broke the silence, clasping her hands together.

"Some of us really haven't had the chance to get to know each other yet; even if it doesn't help the project, it's a sensible thing to do." Shiro agreed, nodding.

"Really? Bonding? No thank you, not for me, not with the mullet over there." Lance flat out refused, crossing his arms and lifting his chin defiantly.

"What is it you have against me?!" Keith responded, exasperated.

"You're a pilot!" Lane stated, as if it was the most obvious thing in the world.

"So?!" He shot back

"You're a PIL--" Lance began to repeat.

"Shut up, Lancelot, you're just jealous." Pidge cut in, waving the two off. Lancelot? 

"Am not! Not of that Emo." He fought back. 

"Your full name's Lancelot?" I asked with a slightly louder than intended voice.

"Oh great! Thanks Pidge, now the pretty girl thinks my name's goddamn Lancelot!" Lance flung a defeated arm in the air, rubbing his head.

"I don't think that's the embarrassing part." She retorted, turning away from him and towards Shiro. "Come on, Mr Leader, where do we go from here?" Shiro looked startled at the sudden attention shift, but cleared his throat anyway. 

"I suggest going to check up on Hunk first. It's still early in the day and we'll need to make plans about this whole "bonding thing", but we shouldn't do that without a member of the team here." He replied, putting on an authoritative tone. 

"What say you, oh second in command?" Pidge turned to Keith who furrowed his brows.

"I think it's a good idea." He responded simply. Pidge's expression fell flat.

"You really aren't one to elaborate, are you?" She commented, making me chuckle slightly.

"Right! Well, gang, it's time you got suited and booted, because you're ready for the road!" Mr. Coran clapped his hands together merrily. "I shan't join you, but do tell me if anything interesting happens!" He finished, promptly dropping the vial into Allura's hands, making his way to the door and seeing himself out with a wave.

"... Okay, well, let's get started by collecting some supplies." Shiro said, slightly unsure on his words. With a few grumbles, everyone was up and around the workshop collecting pens and papers. Lance told the route he would usually use to get to Hunk's house from school, and as quick as that we were excused from the school building and off to Hunk's place.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> When will Hunk return from the war?  
> I really hope this isn't that bad I'm trying my best.  
> There will be actual plot! I promise!!


	3. Hunk In Love

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> One step forward and two to the side.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> SEASON 4!!!!!!!! That is all.

Hunk's apartment was a considerable trek from the school without any means of public transport. Nevertheless, we arrived at the complex within the hour; still during the period where most people would've been asleep during the holidays. Luckily, the receptionist to the building directed us towards a lift, saving us from the impossible amount of stairs. 

"Just a heads up, Hunk gets a little clingy when he's ill." Lance warned us just as the lift came to a full stop.

"What do you mean by clingy?" Allura asked, raising her hand. Lance shrugged nonchalantly as he went over to his front door.

"Nothing bad, unless you don't like constant hugs and love." He replied, smiling as he knocked on the door. Keith slightly grimaced. 

"What, you allergic?" Lance taunted, causing him to huff.

"Just... not used to it." He responded, sounding a bit defeated. 

"To be fair to Emo, not everyone comes from a family of close to four hundred. Affection is a little weird for us." Pidge sympathised, causing Lance to gasp.

"Are you siding with Mullet, now? I thought we had something!" He exaggerated, placing an offended hand to his chest and tutting. "Just because you two worked together earlier--" 

"Nobody's coming." Shiro commented, leaning over to peek through the window. Lance shifted his attention to where Shiro was looking, pulling a face. 

"Maybe he didn't hear it?" Pidge suggested, pressing the door bell. It rang out within the house, but even then there was no sign of movement.

"He must not be in." Allura observed.

"Big guy doesn't go anywhere when he's ill, he's probably sleeping. But no worries, I have his spare set of keys right here with me." Lance reassured us. Digging into his pockets, he pulled out a ring of keys and selected a gold one to open the door.

"Are you married or something?" Pidge remarked, staring at the him.

"If he somehow gets rich, then he's all mine." Lance shot back. The door swung open to a dark hallway, the floor littered with... something, followed by a sickly wave of heat that engulfed our bodies. "Hunk! We're here to check up on you!" He called, listening for a reply. A muffled response came from upstairs. "Oh boy, he must be real ill if he ain't in the kitchen."

"That's what you're worried about? Not the heat? Or that... stuff?" Keith said, recoiling into himself slightly. Lance then turned his attention to the floor and almost screamed. Tissues were scattered everywhere, as well as a few boxes of herbal medication and one tray of half gone painkillers. 

"My word!" Allura exclaimed, eyes bulging as she almost fell off of the front door step. 

"This is a breeding ground for bacteria, no wonder he's ill." Pidge squinted through the darkness into the room. Another muffled response came from upstairs again, followed by a thud. Wincing, we made our way into the apartment as best as we could and shut the door behind us. 

"I've gotta go check on the big guy." Worry etched into his tone, Lance rolled up his sleeves and waded his way to the staircase. 

"Would you like us to join you?" Shiro asked.

"He might get embarrassed if all of us visit his room." Allura replied.

"It's fine, if I need help I'll call down." Lance waved off, making his way to Hunk's room. 

"Well, I'll go get us some cleaning supplies for this." Shiro informed us, disappearing off into the kitchen.

"We should open the windows too, it's really warm in here." I suggested, pulling open the curtains to let some light in while trying my best to crack it open. Allura came over quickly, seeing as I was completely struggling, and opened the window with ease. With an embarrassed smile, I thanked her (but deep down, I was shook).

"I have some gloves we can use." Keith spoke up, unzipping his duffel bag.

"Yes please, that'd be wonderful." Allura replied as she began opening another window. Keith pulled a bright pink pack of gloves out of his bag, a white cat mascot on the side of the box. 

"... Hello... Kitty..?" Pidge questioned, not quite believing what she was seeing. Keith stared at her with a brow raised, as if she was the strange one in this situation.

"I need to use kids' sizes because my hands are small." He stated simply, slipping on a pair of gloves and then handing the pack to Pidge. She looked at him skeptically, but put some anyway. When the pack got to me I had to refuse.

"I'm allergic to latex, sorry." I explained apologetically. 

"I have latex free ones too." He replied, pulling another pack out of his bag, this time with a bright blue mascot on the side. I took it from his hands and quickly equipped myself.

"That's insane, why do you have so much stuff?" Pidge stared intently at the open bag, spotting something else. "Is that a dictionary?!"

"Pidge, stop being weird." Shiro cut in, returning with a mop and two brooms in hand. She stood upright and shot Shiro an unimpressed look. "There's also a dustpan and brush and-- Hello Kitty gloves?" 

"Keith brought them with him." Allura explained, handing him the pack. Shiro placed down the equipment and took it from Allura's hands, shimmying out a glove.

"... I don't think these will fit." He held his hand up next to the glove, proving the size difference to be enormous.

"You'll have to wear the ones that V has with her." Keith responded, passing him the pack I had given back to him. Shiro inspected the mascot with a strained expression, but put on a glove anyway.

"Man, do you see that ratio right there?" Pidge whispered to me, leaning in. Directing my attention to Keith and Shiro's hands, I saw that Shiro's were almost double Keith's. "That's beautiful." Nudging her and shaking my head, I laughed.

"As Shiro said, stop being weird." I repeated. 

"Hey, I'm not the one with cartoon gloves." She grinned at me, swinging round to grab one of the two brooms available and throwing it at me to catch. Just as we were about to begin, Allura spoke up.

"I must let you all know-- I'm absolutely useless at chores." She said, standing awkwardly with her mop facing the wrong way up.

"--Allura." Pidge cut in, gesturing  for her to switch the direction it was facing. Spotting her mistake, Allura just put the mop down and smiled nervously. I could almost feel the embarrassment radiating off of her.

"Thats fine, the AC looks to be jammed if you're any good at fixing things." Shiro reassured her, setting her at ease a bit.

"Oh yes please, I'm far better at the handy work." She thanked him, bowing slightly and leaving the mop to Keith, who now donned a face mask. Both Allura and Shiro went into the kitchen, leaving us three alone. Before Pidge could even speak, Keith raised his hand to silence her.

"I only have one of these." He stated, quickly shutting down any conversation and going straight to cleaning. Pidge glanced to me with a bewildered expression; I simply shrugged, having no words to offer to her in this situation.

After a few minutes, some muffled conversation could be heard through Hunk's bedroom door. 

"Pidge!" Lance called, rushing to the top of the stairs. 

"Yea?" She replied, resting on the stick of her broom.

"Help, please, very ill Hunk." Lance explained in broken sentences, gesturing violently for her to come quickly. An alarmed expression passed her face, before she placed down her equipment and hastily followed Lance, leaving Keith and I.

There was a good ten minutes before conversation was made. In that time most of the hallway had been cleared and sterilised; the windows were opened and most of the air was clear. Even though we had been working alongside each other, it was awkward. 

"So, how did you learn Galran?" I prompted him, deciding to initiate some chat. Again, silence followed, but I could tell by the twist of his face that he was simply thinking of an answer.

"... I grew up in Daibazaal." He replied, halting his sweeping to tell me. "My mother's Galran, but my father was Arusian. I didn't see much of her, but I still grew up in a mainly Galran environment; all of my schools were Galran only, including my Kleipa school." He explained further, meeting my eyes seriously. "I'd prefer it if you didn't tell the others this. They don't seem to like Galrans much." 

"I won't say anything." I promised him sincerely. "I appreciate you trusting me, Keith'." I smiled. "But, just a heads up, 'Kleipa' is 'flying' in Arusian." His eyes widened, cheeks reddening.

"S-Sorry, these past days were my first time speaking in Arusian with natives." He rubbed his neck awkwardly. "First time in a long while, at least." I smiled knowingly.

"I can understand the difficulty, that must be why you keep quiet, right?" I asked. 

"Yeah." He nodded, clearing his throat slightly. "I can trust you to keep my cover with things like this." He stated, although he posed it more as a question.

"Of course, it's not easy being Galra, what with all the controversy." I ensured him. 

"Thank you." He lifted two fingers to his chin and flipped them over, a Galran gesture gratitude, one of the highest respect. Chuckling slightly, I returned the gesture.

"You're welcome." Noticing what he had just done, his face went red again. "It's okay, you've got a lot to get used to." I assured him; he nodded slightly in response.

"Oh, Keith and V, if you're done in there, this kitchen really needs patching up." Shiro called, popping his head around the door. 

"We'll be right there!" I replied, picking up my equipment to bring with me.

\--

"I got a delivery for ya!" Lance suddenly yelled from upstairs. The house had just about been finished (mostly by Keith) when the door to Hunk's bedroom bursted open and down came Pidge, flying. Covering my mouth, I stifled a laugh.

"Pidge!" I managed out as I dropped my broom and made my way over to her. Bending down to her, I noticed her very, very, pissed expression and decided not to straight up laugh in her face, for my safety. 

"Hunk's changing, he'll be down after that to get some breakfast." She explained, pulling herself off of the floor with my aid. "Apparently it kills Lance to explain things before forcibly ejecting people, but it's his life." She sounded defeated as she brushed down her clothes, promptly making her way back into the kitchen where the rest of us were.

"I brought some cakes that Coran's wife baked with me yesterday if you would all like one." Keith cut in, pulling his gloves off to produce a tin of muffins from his bag. Pidge's mouth was wide open again as she stared at him, deciding to just shake her head and let it go. 

"They look wonderful, Keith. Thank you very much." Allura smiled gratefully, slipping in a very subtle gesture of two fingers at her chin, Keith and I immediately glanced at each other, his neck blooming red with panic. He awkwardly returned the gesture with the similar 'you're welcome'; Allura winked at both of us.

"Is this like Naruto? Are you going to slam each other with some sick Jitsu now?" Pidge cut in, imitating the hand signs they use on the show. Laughing, I shook my head. 

"Heard y'all were chattin' weeb." Lance called, running in with his arms behind his back like some fake shinobi.

"Oh my god, you watch it too?" I exclaimed with fake annoyance in my voice.

"Oh lord, no, I have taste." Lance scoffed, putting up a cross with his arms to ward off all of the bad anime. "It's Bleach until the day I die."

"Where is Hunk?" Allura suddenly asked. 

"Bathroom, he seems okay to get down here though." He shrugged, eyes wandering towards the muffins. "Woah! Who made these?"

"Emo and Mrs. Coran." Pidge replied smugly. Lance's face fell.

"Mullet?!"

"It's Keith!" He butted in. "... And yeah, I baked some mini-cakes for us, so what?" He answered defensively, crossing his arms.

"He also practically cleaned the house by himself." I added. Lance's face fell even more.

"What the heck man?! That is so out of character!" He exclaimed.

"What character am I again?" Keith replied sarcastically. 

"Uh-- guys? A little help here?" Hunk called from upstairs, prompting Lance to rush up and get him. 

"Ignore him, he's just getting to grips with someone being useful." Pidge clarified Lance's actions to Keith. "I'm gonna take these in the lounge, there's a proper surface for us to plan on so I suggest we move over to there." She explained, picking up the muffins and swiftly taking them in. I followed closely behind her with Allura, Keith and Shiro; Lance was just making his way down with Hunk's arm wrapped around his shoulders. 

When we set ourselves up, Hunk finally got down and seated.

"You know guys-- I-I really, really owe you a lot for this. Thanks so so much." He rambled as he sat down, his nose still stuffed up.

"We ain't done yet! You hungry, big guy?" Lance asked.

"Okay, stupid question, when am I not?" He replied.

"Well, Keith was nice enough to bake us muffins, if you want one." Shiro suggested as he pushed the muffin tray towards Hunk. His eyes nearly fell out of his skull as he switched between staring between Keith and the food.

"You-- you really did that for us, man?" He asked, tears welling in his eyes. Keith nodded awkwardly, scratching the back of his neck. "I can't believe it. You're a beautiful human being, Keith." Hunk whispered, grabbing his hands to get Keith's full attention. Their gazes locked. "Beautiful."

"... O-Okay." Keith replied, face burning up. Lance eyed the two up, before butting in.

"Did my man just get stolen from me?" Lance fake gasped, dramatically posing.

"I do see a spark between the two." Allura played along, grinning. "The quickest way to anyone's heart is through their stomach." She quipped, taking a seat next to Hunk. Hastily, she pulled the numerous objects we were working with out of her bag and displayed them on the table for us all to see. "In other news, Hunk, we have a lot of findings to share with you."

"Ooh, have we got a project yet?" He asked, picking up a sheet of paper and scanning through it, a muffin in the other hand. He made a face. "This is in Galran."

"Which should be a piece of cake for you." Lance responded. Hunk frowned at him.

"We're not starting this again. I'm ill-- be nice to me!" He complained. Keith gave a confused look and glanced over to me for some explanation. As I didn't know either, I shrugged.

"Hunk is from Balmera." Pidge clarified, seeing our silent exchange. Keith made an 'oooh' sound and thanked her, I still didn't know what was going on. Pidge raised her eyebrow.

"Seriously? You're like, Galran royalty and you don't know where Balmera is?" I shook my head at that until Keith spoke up.

"The independent country inside of Gorgul, West Daibazaal." He clarified. It was now my turn to 'oooh' as I turned back to Hunk and Lance, who were now staring at me.

"W-Wait a minute guys--V and Keith are Galran?!" Hunk almost sputtered. 

"Angel in the corner is only a quarter Galran, which, by the way, has never in our history looked better." He shot me a finger gun, making me blush. 

"Thank you." I replied quietly.

"I'm not too sure about Mullet though, you got an explanation?" Lance suddenly sprung the question on Keith. The poor guy almost choked.

"I--Uh-- I just know the language since I was born in Daibazaal when my parents were on vacation. They taught me it because knowing the language was crucial in becoming a Korpal--"

"Pilot!" I whispered to him harshly.

"--Pilot, since the pilot school only taught in Galran." He rambled. "S-So it's not like I'm Galran or anything." He explained, trying his best to convince them, and failing.

"Okay, where that was going I was expecting a huge Tsundere rant with a 'b-baka!' to finish it off." Pidge commented. Lance scoffed.

"Disgusting weaboo filth." 

"... So can you two translate this for me?" Hunk asked us, turning the document to face us.

"If it's the quintessence file, Keith already has." Pidge replied, picking up her printed sheet and handing it to him. Hunk scanned over it quickly, his eyes widening.

"Psychic connection?!" He exclaimed.

"Isn't it awesome?" Pidge enthused, both hands firmly planting on the table. "We found something big!"

"Which reminds me, Hunk, we must test the quintessence with yourself and V, if you would." Allura said, handing him the quintessence vial. Hunk nodded, squinting at the vial as it shone uncertainly in his hands. Standing up, he placed down his muffin and shuffled half way over to me. He watched the material like a hawk for any change at all, and upon seeing there was none he looked at us skeptically.

"You guys aren't pranking me, right?" I shook my head as I came over silently and stood beside Hunk. The material began glowing brighter, causing his head to snap back to it. "Wha-- What is it doing?" 

"Here." I replied simply, putting my hand on the vial. His eyes marbled wildly as he watched the colour shift into a pale yellow, a quiet hum buzzing from it.

"It--" Hunk tore his eyes away to look at Pidge. "Pidge it-- Pidge it changed colour! It-- It's glowing!" She responded silently with a smug smile.

"Didn't I tell you we found something big?" She grinned, crouching down to the table to fill in Hunk's information on the document. He looked back to the glowing vial, deciding to carefully sit down on the sofa and soak in the new information.

"Hunk, we need your opinion on something." Shiro interjected, bringing Hunk's attention to him, who nodded. "Mr. Coran suggested we take time to bond with each other for the project. We won't make plans without your involvement, we need your input." 

"I mean, yeah? Bonding's good. But what are we gonna do?" Hunk replied, taking a bite from his muffin finally. 

"I, personally, would love to try camping." Allura suggested. "It would put us out of our normal environment, it's surely our most efficient option."

"Camping?" Lance began, his face grimacing.

"Actually, Pidge and I still have a lot of equipment from when our families used to camp together. There should be plenty for all of us." I added. Pidge nodded as she picked up a new blank sheet of paper; writing the word 'camping' in the centre in bold letters. 

"It would leave us in the best position if we finished the basics of the project first, we should plan the trip for later." Shiro advised us. "I'm definitely in favour of camping."

"Really?!" Lance exclaimed, looking at as all as if we were insane.

"Don't worry, man, we won't stick you in a tent with emo or anything." Pidge grinned, causing Lance to scoff.

"What are the results so far?" Shiro cut in. She turned her attention back to her table of results hastily and cleared her throat.

"Well... The most vibrant colour was when V was paired with me. The next is Lance, then you, then Allura, then Hunk, and then Keith." She explained, finishing her writing and turning back round to all of us. 

"So it reacts with the bonds between two people?" Hunk asked, raising a hand. Pidge nodded.

"The stronger the bond, the brighter the colour." 

"But-- didn't V and Lance like, literally meet yesterday?" He queried, looking between me and Lance. For some reason, it made me blush a bit.

"What can I say? I'm feel myself glowing when I'm around you." Lance flirted, sliding up beside me. I felt my throat dry again as I tried to laugh, but it came out as more of a squeak.

"The results that come from Lance and V's pairing is a lot stranger than the rest of ours." Pidge said, changing the subject quickly. "Watch." She pointed to the vial in my hand that was quickly shifting between various shades of blue. As the room silenced, a deep but strong hum could be heard emitting from the flask as it sort of bounced around inside.

"Woah, it's like it's possessed." Hunk commented.

"It's certainly peculiar, like a child with far too much energy." Allura added, brows knitting as she watched it.

"Like Lance." Keith agreed nonchalantly, expecting one of us to continue. But there was silence; a complete pin drop as we looked to one another with the revelation crossing our faces. Lance didn't even rebuff the comment.

"Then, this citpeldak..." He began, taking the vial from my hands. "It mirrors us?"

"I think we're getting closer and closer to this psychic connection." Pidge's eyes brightened and practically exuded excitement. Hastily, she took her pen and turned our information document over to its blank side and got to work.

"So, are we like, gonna go camping sooner now?" Hunk raised his hand. "Because, I dunno, s'mores are a big deal to me."

"Alright then, we'll go on the first week of August, if everyone's free." Shiro asked us all. All of us accepted, even Lance begrudgingly said yes. And thus, we planned our camping trip for the remainder of the afternoon until it was time for us to disperse.

Luckily, we found a bus running for our trip home which Allura, Pidge and I could take. Once it neared around 3 o'clock, we said our goodbyes, left the house and hopped on. The ride was long and winding and probably more hassle than the walk it took to get there, but it soon passed with discussions about our upcoming trip. 

Without acknowledging it, the team around me were gradually making me feel more and more comfortable. Camping was something Pidge and I hadn't done for years; not since the both of us had suffered our losses. We were taking steps in the right direction.

Even if they may end up veering to the left.


	4. Everytime I think I'm better, picking my head up, getting nowhere

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> We wouldn't want it all going up in flames now, would we?

"You totally fell asleep on her." Pidge smiled smugly at me over her breakfast. My face flushed red as I felt the sudden urge to bang my head against the table. 

It had been a week or so since we'd been to Hunk's house, but the disgrace still hung over my head as Pidge explained to me again what had happened once we were on the bus. Poor Allura had to miss her stop because I fell asleep on her and ended up getting dropped off by Colleen. I hadn't even had a chance at a full conversation with her, and yet I had to go and make it awkward. 

"Hey, Allura's generally okay about things like that. I'm sure she understands." She tried reassuring me, awkwardly stretching her hand to reach my shoulder across the table.

"Hmm, Allura..." Matt mused as he trailed into the kitchen, a listless look on his face. Pidge almost squawked.

"Matt?! When did you come home?!" She exclaimed, dropping her spoon into her cereal bowl and flying up out of her chair. Matt gave her a confused look, before snapping out of his dazed state and smiling.

"Morning, oh dearest sister of mine." He waved as she gawked at him. 

"I thought you weren't due back until the weekend!" She bounced around him, eyes wide.

"He did say hello to us yesterday." I informed her. She halted in her tracks and stared at me.

"Then how did I--?!"

"Someone was glued to their phone. I even gave you my most brotherly hug, but you were like this." Matt teased, mimicking her typing away. Pidge's face went bright red as her voice went small.

"S-Sorry, I was sorting out our team's camping trip." She apologised, sitting back down.

"Oh, so it wasn't a girlfriend or boyfriend?" Matt teased, taking a seat next to me. "V, darling, do tell." He leaned towards me. 

"It wasn't." She replied flatly.

"I wasn't asking you, Pidge." Matt responded in an equal tone before turning back to me. Catching Pidge's hard gaze on me as she stuffed a spoonful of cereal in her mouth, I made my decision and turned around to face Matt. 

"Actually, it probably was. There's this person called--" I began, being cut off by something wet hitting my face. My head snapped towards Pidge who had her spoon positioned like a catapult. Upon observing the mysterious liquid I saw it was in fact her cereal milk. She looked at me with a deadpan face, while Matt burst out laughing.

"V, don't try me." She said simply. "You know what you're gonna say is wrong." Her insistence on not telling him was the deciding factor. 

"It's a kid called--." I began telling Matt again, before I was cut off by Pidge yelling at me, making me jump out of my seat.

"VE--" She raised her cereal bowl above her head as if to throw it on me. Before I could even put my hands up to shield myself, Colleen walked between the two of us and picked the bowl out of Pidge's hands. 

"Morning, you three. I see you're all very energetic at this early hour." She said with a smile, setting down Pidge's bowl by the sink. Pidge immediately shut up and stood out of the way for her."I have work in half an hour, so I can drop you all off at Lien then."

"Thank you Colleen." I replied, sitting myself back down. "Which team have you been asked to help out Matt?" 

"I was meant to help out a group of new kids, but Coran moved me to yours last week. Something about the material you're working with?" He raised an eyebrow at us as Pidge's face lit up.

"Oh man! You'll never guess what we've got." She said excitedly as she shot up, motioning for us to remain seated. "Stay there, I'll go get my bag." She ran off upstairs. Matt shook his head at her enthusiasm and turned to me.

"As ever, my wonderful little sister is a nerd." He chuckled. "She talked you into this, didn't she?" He turned to ask me.

"Yeah, but it isn't all that bad. I'm making friends I guess." I shrugged. "And it's not like I can back out now, we're a team." At that, Matt smiled.

"She's persuasive." He nodded. "But it's for both of your benefit. I don't know any other teenagers who coop themselves up in libraries and workshops like you two do." He laughed. There was silence between us for a moment, before he continued. "You know, I was worried about you two for next year. But now I see you're putting yourselves out there, I feel much better."

"I'm surprised it's turned out as okay as it has." I replied, resting my head in my hands.

"That's because you took that first big step, V." He gave me a huge smile. "This wouldn't have happened without your input. By the sounds of it, you're all getting on wonderfully."

"I-I didn't do that much..." I argued, averting my gaze as my face heating a bit. 

"Would this have happened if you didn't agree to go?" He grinned, bringing his head to be level with mine. "You've really changed, V."

"I'm back!" Pidge called, causing our heads to snap towards her. She rushed back into the kitchen with her backpack half open and threw it on the table. Plopping down into a chair, she hastily took out her materials. Pidge shoved a few documents into Matt's hands, letting him scan them through before promptly explaining our project to him right up until the time we needed to leave.

\--

The sound of machinery working violently rung throughout the workshop. As I pushed the door open, Lance's head popped up from underneath our worktop surface. A strained look hung on his face as got up and promptly rushed towards us.

"GUYS! I'M SO GLAD YOU'RE HERE!" He shouted over the explosive sounds. I searched the room as Pidge asked what was going on, spotting a new printer in the corner that was going insane. Before Lance could even explain, I jogged over and pulled it's power chord.

"IT'S THE PRINTE-- Oh, it stopped." He looked towards me, his mouth dropping. "It was there the whole time?!"

"So, we got a printer." Pidge commented, eyeing it up.

"It was there when I got here. Malfunction and all." Lance said, placing his hands on his hips. "I rang up Hunk who said he'd fix it when he got here, so I hid it out." 

"It's just a printer, man." Pidge poked her head round the back of it, checking for anything. 

"It attacked me, Pigeon!" Lance retorted, placing an offended hand on his chest.

"I'm sure I could try fixing it." Matt suggested, observing the printer for any faults.

"Sure man, it's all yours." Lance replied, stepping far away as Matt had a look. "But uh, who are you?"

"Oh right--" Matt began, before being cut off by Pidge.

"He's V's boyfriend." She stated. I flew round to her with wide eyes to see her with a smug expression on her face. Even Matt shot her a confused look. 

"What? No he's n--" I began.

"You have a boyfriend?!" Lance exclaimed, his face stuck in a shocked expression. Pidge burst into laughter. Almost too quickly I replied.

"No!" I very hastily denied it, spinning around towards him and flapping my hands to dismiss it entirely. 

"Woah, uhm, hi guys, I guess?" Hunk walked in through the door to me frantically waving at Lance; Lance looking between Matt and myself with wide eyes; Matt with his upper torso fully in the printer; and Pidge who was laughing her sides off. I whipped round to Hunk to say something before I was beaten by Lance.

"V brought her boyfriend!" He pointed to Matt. Pidge's laugh turned into an evil cackle.

"He's not my boyfriend!" I yelled at Hunk, who just nodded slowly and cleared his throat.

"Well-- uh-- I came here early to fix that printer. So if you would--" He set his bag down and came over, ushering Matt out of its insides. He gestured for us to step away, but as we did I bumped into Lance, making me whip round to face him. We stared at each other for an intense minute, until I broke.

"He's not my boyfriend, okay?!" I repeated definitively, crossing my arms. Lance looked at me with a taken aback expression, before breaking out into a smirk.

"Yes ma'am." He teased with a salute. Noticing how bossy I was being, my cheeks heated. I quickly held my arms to my sides and averted my gaze. "Man, V, you sure are surprising." He chuckled.

"I-I'm just..." I began, trailing off.

"No, no! It's cool. You're cool, I mean." He blabbered, trying his best to explain himself before shooting me probably the purest smile I've ever seen. I would be lying if I said I didn't feel my heart jump a bit, his stutterings made him seem much more human.

"You're cool too, Lance." I replied quietly, returning his smile. His face dropped again as a light pink dusted his cheeks, but he quickly broke back out into a grin again.

"Well that's a huge relief. For a while now I thought you kinda hated me." He confessed, looking at the ground. I replied again all too hastily. 

"I would never--!" I started, before stopping myself and clearing my throat, heat rising on my face. "I'm just a bit inexperienced at this. You're somebody I could never hate--" 

"I got your coffee." Keith stated as he walked in, startling me. In both of his hands were two foam drink holders.

"You got us coffee?" Lance responded almost immediately, walking over to take one from him.

"Yeah?" He shot back defensively.

"Lance thinks you're really nice for always getting us stuff, he's just got too much pride to tell you that." Pidge called from the other side of the workshop.

"Like a tsundere?" Matt said, adding fuel to the fire. Lance almost choked.

"Hello everyone! I brought us all coffee-- oh, my." Allura came into the workshop, a bright smile on her face which quickly dropped to an expression of surprise. Keith and Allura had exactly the same order from exactly the same coffee shop. "I didn't see you there this morning." She laughed nervously.

"... Me neither." Keith replied, shrugging. 

"I'll take one!" Matt yelled from inside the supply closet. Allura's face dropped in surprise.

"We have a new member?" She asked, placing down her tray of coffee.

"Did I just hear Matt?" Shiro had just barely made it in the door. Pidge snorted, nodding.

"Yeah, he's working with us now." She answered them both. 

"Shiro! Buddy!" Matt came flying out of the closet and running up to Shiro. A bright smile spread across his face, which Shiro returned as they high fived, diving straight into conversation.

"Who is Matthew?" Keith asked Pidge, who was smiling at the sweet scene. 

"Matt? He's my brother. Best friends with Shiro." She replied, turning to him. "Also a top class pilot and engineer."

"Being a smartass runs in the family!" Matt added, turning around from his chat.

"It's been so long since you've even contacted me." Shiro stated, a puzzled expression on his face.

"Come to think of it, I hadn't heard from you either." Pidge agreed. 

"Sorry guys, I wanted to keep it a secret." He grinned bashfully, rubbing the back of his head.

"Oh!" Allura clasped her hands together as she turned on her heel, picking up one of her cups of coffee. "Your drink." She smiled as she gave it to him. 

"So, are they like..?" Lance leant towards me to ask, gesturing to Shiro and Matt. I shook my head.

"Matt already has a partner." I explained. "And before you say anything, it's not me." At that, he chuckled.

"Okay, V." He nodded, a smirk on his face. 

"We have two sets of drinks?" Shiro asked as he saw the sheer amount that was in the room.

"Oh yeah man, Keith and Allura totally got us double." Hunk replied, poking his head up from inside the printer. 

"I'd best give some away to the teachers." Allura said wonderingly, picking up her foam holder. 

"Can I come with? I've gotta get Mr. Kolivan's opinion on something." Pidge asked.

"Of course!" Allura agreed with a smile, beckoning her to get the door. A moment after they left, Hunk emerged from inside the printer again.

"Matt, buddy, did you see anything in the closet?" He asked him, resting on his elbows. Matt shook his head with an apologetic smile.

"Unless a mop is the answer, we best get our equipment from the main storage room." He replied, shrugging. Hunk sighed.

"Well, looks like we're on a mission too." He brushed off his clothes and grabbed Matt to make their way out of the door. Just as I was about to clean the whiteboard, Shiro spoke up.

"Matt informed me that Mr. Coran will be allowing us more laptops due to the groups size. I'll be needing some help to bring them back if any of you would like to come." He asked the remainder of us, to which we all nodded. 

"Yeah, sure man. Should one of us wait in the workshop?" Lance asked, raising his arm.

"I don't mind staying." I replied. 

I shouldn't have said that.

"That would be great, thank you V. Make sure nothing moves." Shiro smiled to me as he, Lance and Keith made their way out of the door. 

I should not have said that. 

But instead, I smiled and waved them off, shutting the door behind them. Taking a deep breath, I looked around the room, sitting myself in the centre on a beanbag. I held my knees tightly together and rested my elbows on them, shaking my foot to keep myself occupied.

Being alone always set me on edge. The slightest sound would startle me, and I would never be able to relax. I would focus on small details that would then bother me, like how this room was so big and spacious without the others, and how I felt like I was being swallowed into it. And how all of its contents were very, very--.

I slapped my cheeks lightly, standing up straight. I needed to do something to keep my mind going. Crossing the room to where the files were, I sorted them into translated and untranslated documents, putting them in order of relevancy. Then, upon spotting our raided pen collection, I tidied that up too. I was just about to move on to making sure we had enough whiteboard pens out, when a hand on my shoulder stopped me. 

"Hello? Earth to Lola?" A voice spoke, making me whip round to face them. A tall, stylish girl stood in front of me. Somebody I didn't recognise. Her skin was sort of red, as if she came from the islands off Daibazaal. And I was certain I knew her from somewhere.

"S-Sorry!" I began, smiling nervously. "Can I help you?" I asked her. She gave me a warm grin as she put her hands behind her back.

"Hi! My name's Rose. And, well, you see, I heard that the daughter of the great M and James Duninng was at my new school and I may have got a little curious." She bobbed on her feet, an endearing gesture. I noticed how her eyes sparkled as she mentioned my parents names, and couldn't help but smile with her. 

"Yes, that's me." I responded, making her bounce from foot to foot happily, squealing.

"I'm a huge fan of your parents! They're so inspiring, and I loved their book about astronomy--oh yeah! Which name do you prefer? I called you Lola earlier because your dad uses his middle name but I know your mother goes by her initial so..." She spoke to me in an animated manner, making me giggle.

"V or Lola. Either is fine, but I prefer V." I explained.

"Just like cherry cola? C-o-l-a Cola?" Lance sang as he busted in, a bundle of laptops in his hands. I squeaked, making Rose chuckle at me. "Ooh, who's your friend?"

"This is Rose, she's a fan of my parents." I replied. She waved at him in a friendly manner, her face turned away from my view.

"Me and my group are all new here, so I just had to come meet her." She explained.

"Welcome to Lien, I guess." He said, setting down the pile of laptops over our files. "I'll be back again in a minute, I've got to get the rest of the equipment." He finished quickly, darting out of the room. Rose turned back round to me with a glint in her eye.

"It's an absolute dream to meet you, V." She grinned. "May I ask about your project?"

"O-of course! It's nothing spectacular like my mother or father would do, but it's different." I nodded, speaking nervously. "We're working with an unknown material mostly, experimenting to find out what it really is. We haven't got much other than that, except for a camping trip, which isn't that interesting." My cheeks began to heat up the more I explained, realising that we had basically nothing going for us at the moment. Rose's eyes perked up.

"When's your camping trip?" She asked, confusing me slightly. 

"Tomorrow, this Saturday." I replied. 

"Oh okay! That's good, I heard that we would be hit with a storm next week so I wanted to make sure." She said, smiling happily. "We wouldn't want you to be struck by lightning and go up in flames again, now that would be a tragedy!" She giggled, slipping it in nonchalantly as she sauntered her way over to the door. My eyes flew open. "But I must be going, and like before, it was wonderful seeing you again."

I pressed my lips tightly together, watching her intently. My stomach churned as I began to notice her implication. Her bubbly demeanour had dropped completely. The last I saw of her was a cold, calculating gaze as she turned on her heel.

"Almost forgot! Lotor says hello, may even be paying you a visit later." She kept her almost sickeningly sweet voice, but dropped all formality and body language. The mention of Lotor's name was enough to drag all oxygen out my lungs. Everything was happening too quickly, and I felt myself staggering back into the workshop desk. Her eyes flickered over me one last time, before she gave me one of her all too convincing smiles.

"Stay safe, Venus!" And with that, she slammed the door behind her.

I held onto the edges of the wooden desk with such intensity, I felt shooting pains in my fingers. The past that I had decided to let burn down with my family home was now coming back to haunt me. The past that I left by living with the Holts over my parents. The past that gave me nothing but sleepless nights and unneeded stress. 

It all felt too much as it all came flooding back at me.

"V?" I heard a distant voice call out to me. Lifting my head slightly, I saw Lance in the doorway, holding more laptops. He looked out of breath as he set them down and came up to me. "V? Are you okay?"

I nodded in response, trying my best at a smile. As soon as I tried, I felt my muscles shake, and then saw that my whole body was too. He raised an unconvinced eyebrow at me.

"You're as white as a sheet." He said, eyes searching my face. Our gazes met, before I looked back down to the ground. "Do you need anything?" I shook my head, making him frown. "Can I at least get you some water?" Again, I shook my head, but he insisted. 

With a cold glass in between my even colder hands, I took small sips. I was now sat on the work surface, with Lance sat across from me on the beanbag. He was patient enough to keep me company as I  calmed myself down; let my brain process all that was just said. Something about his look was restless, but he didn't look angry with me, on the contrary actually.

When I was able to muster up a voice, I half whisper half spoke.

"What's the matter?" I asked him. He turned his head to me with a surprised expression, before breaking into a warm smile.

"V, you really are surprising. This isn't meant to be vice versa." He chuckled lightly, propping himself up on his elbows. His expression slightly dropped as he began to talk. "Pidge nearly screamed at us for leaving you. We all got dragged off by Mr. Coran for a lecture on our new students, and as soon as she saw you weren't there, she went off like a whippet." 

At that, I smiled weakly, finding the strength to laugh slightly.

"When I told her I saw you with a friend, she just got... worse." He continued, meeting my gaze. "I guess I didn't really gauge how bad your fear was until she got mad like that. First of all, I didn't even know you were scared at all-- but, not the point." He stopped himself, meeting my gaze again. "I guess I'm just really sorry, V." He apologised sincerely. 

"It's okay." I began, clearing my throat. "I'm not... like this just because I was left alone. That friend of mine..." I trailed off, trying to work out how best to explain it. "... she referenced a dark point in my life and let me sit with it." I settled on that, as I took another sip.

"You're mysterious, V." He commented, a smirk on his lips. "You go by your initial. You have this dark past that no one knows. You may as well be James Bond." He joked, making me feel lighter in my mood.

"I'm no secret agent." I added.

"But that friend, she didn't threaten you, did she?" He asked. I shook my head.

"Actually, she warned me. But she wasn't very... kind about it." I replied, crossing my arms. The door burst open, making Lance fly up next to me. In came Pidge, who landed in my lap with her arms around me. I blinked for a few seconds, before placing my water down and returning her hug.

"They left you all alone!" She cried, squeezing tightly. I wheezed as I patted her back, making her let go to face me. 

"I'm fine." I coughed, smiling reassuringly at her. Lance's eyes darted to meet mine, but I just shrugged at him. "Really."

"Why didn't you say anything to them?!" She frowned deeply, taking my shoulders. I smiled again.

"It's fine, I was fine." I repeated, patting her back. After a minute or two of searching my face, she sighed. Slowly, Pidge nodded.

"Alright." She relaxed, sliding back off of my lap. "I trust you, but don't try and be tough on me, V." She teased, pointing at me in accusation. "I know you!" At that, I genuinely found myself grinning as I put my hand up in defeat.

"Guilty as charged."

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> why am I getting worse at writing? Find out next time. The ending was bad and I'm sorry

**Author's Note:**

> I wasn't too sure how to end this so hopefully that was okay. Kudos would be really appreciated but if you didn't like it that's also okay! I will probably update this soon if everything goes smoothly, so stay tuned.


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